Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Up, Up and Away.....

I'd just like to say that this story is for me, not pleasant. The last thing I want is to gain traction from someone else's misfortune no matter its stripe. Unfortunately, the problems John Galliano faces at this time are not ones that will go away quickly or be easily buried. It is also unfortunate that those problems are all being exposed in the press right at the very moment that so many designers in Paris are trying to show their collections to an audience that is extraordinarily distracted. I feel sorry for those designers as it's hard enough to hold the attention of an attention deficient crowd on the best of days. Suzy Menkes has just reported in the NYTimes that Galliano will in fact face trial in Paris later this spring and has departed for a rehabilitation facility as I write. His close friends Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell persuaded him to go though it's unclear the location of said facility. Menkes speculated that it may be The Meadows in Arizona as it is the facility of choice for such fashion luminaries as Donatella Versace and Elton John. At this point I have to admit I read that line with a most jaundiced eye. The cynic in me leapt from its locked closet and started howling at the gathering clouds over head. Of course it is a good thing that he's headed for help but to be counseled by two people whose personal lives are so murky seems just a little bit suspect. It is not my place or anyone else's to judge but this situation is making a bee-line towards the bizarre. LVMH's decision to go ahead with a collection that is unfinished to date is another curious choice. Why not fore go the presentation and let buyers and press see it in the show room? Why knowingly stage a 3-ring circus with most of the animals running loose in the streets? I'm beginning to feel that it is a situation of the blind leading the blind. Out of respect for everyone concerned, LVMH should take this debacle off the radar screen for the moment, let others do their jobs and leave Galliano to start his long road to where ever.

it IS a circus of the absurd. "train wreck? what train wreck? notice all the beading in this gown! isn't it divine? doesn't it deserve the cover on the next issue of your magazine? will you give us a discount on your advert rates?"...If, they had any sense of propriety they would have cancelled the show and shown the press the garments at the factory or in the showroom. No big to do, a sober affair that lets the products speak for themselves.However..knowing how much money these shows cost, I can see the bean counters at LVMH pushing for it since, they'll have to pay for it one way or the other; might as well get as much publicity as it can be had.It's ALWAYS about the bottom line in these mega corps., no?The humans involved are expendable. Misfortune and tragedy can be swept under the red carpet and, it's business as usual.

and, now Karl weighs in on this.and, what he has to say is...."I’m furious, if you want to know. I’m furious that it could happen, because the question is no longer even whether he really said it. The image has gone around the world. It’s a horrible image for fashion, because they think that every designer and everything in fashion is like this. This is what makes me crazy in that story. The thing is, we are a business world where, especially today, with the Internet, one has to be more careful than ever, especially if you are a publicly known person. You cannot go in the street and be drunk — there are things you cannot do... I’m furious with him because of the harm he did to LVMH and [chairman and ceo] Bernard Arnault, who is a friend, and who supported him more than he supported any other designer in his group, because Dior is his favorite label. It’s as if he had his child hurt."

Galliano is a gay man. Aside from killing anyone NOT from the "master race" Hitler was very busy killing all gay men; men with the pink triangle on their chest.So it is obvious Mr Galliano places himself above everyone on the planet, is he a god just as Hitler thought he was a god ?It's about time those "couturiers" remind themselves who they are and what they are and what they do. They are " Couturiers", not Gods !

Chris...LOL yeah I can believe Uncle Karl is as bloodless, attention-seeking, tone deaf, clueless, selfish, and self-interested as his comment amply shows. Frankly he often skates VERY close to the edge w/ stuff that comes out of his mouth so he may be thinking "there but for the grace of God go I!!". Well I guess we know one thing for certain is Karl's motto....'do what you want as long as you don't get caught, don't embarass the boss, and don't embarass the label/image.' A real corporate crocodile that one. Really, most of the fashion people who have spoken out have shown their backsides as well, if they but knew it. JG is hardly alone in assiness or arrogance.

To think jerks like these folks can get attention but poor Ralph Rucci gets ignored?! Come to think of it, maybe he's gettting the better end of the bargain.

Fluff...I do have to say you've done the best posts I've seen on this matter, bar none. You've really handled this in a very thoughtful way and allowed your posters to do likewise.

Your point about the circus thing is spot on, but I figured they'd send out the 2 unfinished collections "as is" even hen he was only suspended. For straters, it's a guaranteed sell out no matter how good/bad it may be because people will want a chance to own what could be the last new Galliano designs for now or even forever. It's the golden opportunity to make one last big killing off their golden goose. After all, Dior under new designer may not be as successful as it was under Galliano. Given the outrage that many fash lovin' folks feel towards how they handled him, Booze and Shoes may have some serious issues for the forseeable future in terms of sells and image. IOW, they want the gettin' while the gettin's good. This whole thing has cast a pall over Paris Fashion Week, IMHO and that can't have made LVMH/Dior/Gallinoa/brass many frienmds in the wider Paris fashion scene. Methinks that Galliano may not be the only one punished in the fallout.

As for the Naomi/Kate thing...LOL, well let's just say I think it's a good legal move, if nothing else. It clearly worked for them when they had legal troubles. Who knows, maybe for him, rehab will stick?!

Again Fluff....wow the comments! I have to say youre level-headed analysis makes me feel relieved that there are ppl who can see/feel this out objectively vs emotionally. I WISH I could talk having more info on the fallout from insiders... but after reading ur post and my own feelings of working for such a genius, it does nothing but prolong this wreck of a mess further....so as Joy says...so what? WHo cares!...